Biography

John Huston was born in Nevada, Missouri. He was the only child of Rhea (née Gore) and Canadian-born Walter Huston, originally Walter Houghston. His father, who was of Scots and Scots-Irish descent, was an actor, initially in vaudeville, and later in films. His mother, of English and Welsh background, initially worked as a sports editor for various publications but gave it up after Huston was born. Similarly, his father gave up his stage acting career for steady employment as a civil engineer, although he returned to stage acting within a few years. He would later become highly successful on both Broadway and then in motion pictures.

Huston's parents divorced in 1913, when he was 6, and as a result much of his childhood was spent living in boarding schools. During summer vacations, he traveled with each of his parents separately — with his father on vaudeville tours, and with his mother to racetracks or other sports events. The young Huston benefited greatly from seeing his father act on stage, as he was later drawn to the world of acting. Some critics, such as Lawrence Grobel, surmise that his relationship with his mother may have been the cause of his five marriages, and why few of his relationships lasted. Grobel wrote, "When I interviewed some of the women who had loved him, they inevitably referred to his mother as the key to unlocking Huston's psyche." According to actress Olivia de Havilland, "she [his mother] was the central character. I always felt that John was ridden by witches. He seemed pursued by something destructive. If it wasn't his mother, it was his idea of his mother."